Independence: South Yemen gained their independence from the UK, November 30, 1967 / North Yemen gained their independence from the Ottoman Empire, November 1918 / The Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen], celebrated as “Unification Day,” May 22, 1990.